G is for Gundam
by DominicBan
Summary: Gino, a lonely school boy, begins to create Gundam Models. His models come to life, and interesting things happen.


You could say that when Gino made his Gundam models, he put his very heart and soul into each and every one of them.

Model building was a hobby that Gino had inherited from his father, who, ever since his mother passed away, spent his evenings constructing and painting models of World War II era aero planes. Since he was a child, Gino had observed and admired the sheer focus that his father put into creating his model airplanes. When his father was holding his tiny paint brush or clicking together various bits of wing and fuselage, it became apparent that during those instants, nothing else existed in his mind except the work he was doing with his thin, nimble hands. By the age of ten, Gino had insinuated himself into his fathers hobby—entirely because he needed his father to know that he existed.

The tiny pieces of model plastic were a challenge to Gino's pudgy fingers (that, unfortunately, came already equipped on his pudgy body). Those fingers gave him trouble pressing the number pad on his cell phone—he would mean to press one number and end up pushing in one of the numbers next to it—so you can imagine the fretting he had to go through to attach together tiny plastic sockets and hinges: the main activity of model building. The first time he worked with his dad on a model, he ended up snapping the propeller of a P-51 Mustang in half, while still getting the pieces out of the box. He was dismayed by this, but his father said it was fine. His father told him that the best part of model building was the challenge, and that real men enjoyed challenges. So with using much super glue, by the time Gino was thirteen, they had filled up the roof of their garage with dangling airplanes: prop-planes and jet-planes. From the F4F Wildcat to the Japanese Zero; from the blunt nosed F-86 Sabre from the Korean War, to the sleek black F-22 Raptor: all of them hanging from the ceiling as if in flight during a dogfight.

It was during high school when Gino was first caught by the Gundams. He had some notion of them before—he was an avid fan of Mecha Robots in anime. Voltes V, Voltron, Diamos, Mazinger Z: he'd loved these robots in his childhood. As for Gundam, though he'd seen them in passing on the TV and he'd seen boxes of the toys on the hobbyshop his father frequented, he never truly focused on the series until Gundam Wing started to air in the local TV stations.

He became smitten by its lead protagonist Gundam—the one that had metal wings on its back that held its laser rifle and beam saber, and struck poses as if it were an avenging angel—Gundam Wing, it was called. He followed the anime series religiously every week, and cursed the world if ever he missed an episode. The concept of the robot mechs—that they were flying samurai—appealed to Gino immensely. They were just like the Japanese Zero pilots: all of them ready to die for their beliefs. As the series went on, other Gundams were revealed. They shared certain basic principals—like the _Fukigaeshi _(protective wings) splayed from the forehead of their samurai helmets, or their masked robot faces—but with different variations. Gino reveled in these details, he enjoyed and celebrated how each of these Gundams were different—effective in their own way—from one another.

He began zipping in and out of their nearby hobby shop, buying his first Gundam models and working on their assembly and decoration as soon as he stepped home. He decided that he favored the 1/100 scale Master Grade models the most. They were large enough that he could enjoy all those tiny details that made each of the Gundams unique, and yet they remained un-obnoxious in size.

He made his way, constructing the five ultimate forms of the protagonist Gundams in Gundam Wing, and the one villain Gundam. In looking at the finished products, you would say that they were created with a much more meticulous hand than Gino possessed. But truly, it was Gino who toiled to create these figures. It was he who willed his those hands he'd thought disgruntled into genius-level employ. Without knowing it, his love for the Gundams made him a true artist.

He kept these Gundam models mounted on various platforms, over desks and bookshelves, in his room.

Gino restrained himself from ever _playing_ with these models. To have them fight each other in heroic battles just as they did in the anime. He told himself that he was grown-up now and only kids played with toys. He told himself that they were not toys, but works of art that he himself had created. He repressed his imagination. Perhaps because of this, at night, he would have vivid dreams of the Gundams coming to life.

The Gundam Epyon moved. Looking like a winged demon soaked in blood, it stretches its wings, ignites the engines on its back, and boosters up in flight—its red whip trailing behind it like a lazy tail. It flies, speeding up and banking itself to curve through Gino's bedroom door and out into the hallway: a space Spartan enough to give it all the advantages it wants.

The other Gundams would follow suit.

Gundam Wing Zero, being the fastest of the other Gundams folds itself into Neo-bird mode: from looking like a robot samurai in full armor, it crunches, turns, and arranges itself to look like a fighter plane and jets on, banking the curve just as well as Epyon did.

Gundam Deathscythe Hell follows, as dark as the Reapers shadow, with its green-bladed beam sickle in hand.

Gundam Sandrock Kai speeds through too. It draws its two curved Shotel blades from its back, their edges, super-heated ready to cut.

And Gundam Altron, moving with the grace of a regal dragon, boosters itself on, its beam trident at the ready; the dragon fangs mounted on each of its arms looking hungry.

In banking the curve, Deathscythe, Sandrock, and Altron come perilously close to the walls and they burn the peach-colored paint with the ignition from their boosters.

The Gundam Heavyarms is the last to roll out. Heavy with all its ammunition and being the long range type it had no need to rush. It strolled out of the bedroom door, aimed its twin-barrel gattling gun for just the right shot… and hesitates.

Up-ahead Wing Zero has reverted itself back to mobile-suit mode and has engaged Epyon in a duel of beam sabers. Epyon had already used its whip to take away Wing Zero's twin-buster rifle, throwing it down the stairway and on the first floor of the house. Epyon moves now trying to keep Wing Zero's back to his allies making it difficult for them to assist with any projectiles from long range.

In a fight of sabers with Wing Zero, Epyon has a distinct advantage with its longer, more powerful beam blade as it is connected by wire to a charger pack carried on its back. Epyon stances up—pointing its blade right at Wing Zero's cockpit located on the mobile suit's mid-torso. A false move forward would get the Wing Zero impaled. Their fight evolves into a series of parries and thrusts and deflections on each others beam saber. The Wing Zero tries to use its speed to get up close, but the Epyon, who is just as fast as the Wing Zero, manages to dodge all attacks thrown at it. So, their blade dance continues.

Wing Zero and Epyon take their fight, flying in high speeds, zig-zagging down the stairs. Wing Zero detaches its shield; then throws it away. It uses its free hand to hold its beam saber two-handed. Then it attacks, a mad swing at Epyon. Epyon manages to block this attack but is forced against a wall by the impact. Epyon looks up, just in time to see the Gundam Sandrock hanging on the crystal chandelier. Sandrock lets go to drop down on Epyon, using its boosters and gravity to speed its two Shotel blades to slash. But Epyon moves fast enough to dodge this attack, although it loses a good piece of its right wing to Sandrocks super-heated Shotels. Epyon takes its whip, and lashes it to wrap around Sandrock's waist. Epyon opens its booster engines to maximum thrust. If it can build up enough speed, it would be able to rip Sandrock in half using G-force and the heat from its whip. As Epyon tries to drag Sandrock away, the Gundam Altron braces up the shield in its left shoulder and crashes into Epyon in a shoulder charge. All three Gundams fly in a tangled mess into the small bathroom on the bottom floor of Gino's house.

Altron and Epyon manage to get up from the crash at the same time. They fly up just in front of the bathroom sink and mirror, touching down in stance on the flat marble surface. Epyon once again points its beam saber at the Altron's cockpit on its torso. Altron attacks first, with its beam trident stabbing at Epyon. The attack is blocked, but then Altron turns around and makes a swing—severing the wire connecting Epyon's sword to the energy pack on its back. Epyon's sword shortens because of this; it has lost considerable power.

Outside the bathroom, the Gundam Wing Zero has managed to recover its twin-buster rifle and takes aim, not at Altron, or at Epyon, but at Epyon's reflection being shown in the bathroom mirror. Wing Zero fires. The shot gets reflected, bouncing off the mirror and hitting Epyon on its right shoulder. The heat from the blast melts the armor on Epyon's shoulder, and liquefied red plastic drips to the floor.

Behind Epyon the toilet seat pops open. And the dark shape that emerges from it materializes as the Gundam Deathscythe Hell. Deathscythe Hell swings its beam scythe in a vicious slash at Epyon destroying most of its right leg.

Although damaged, Epyon is able to fly out of the bathroom to find that Heavyarms has been waiting for him out in the kitchen. There is nothing to block its aim here, so Heavyarms fires. It unloads its massive assortment of ammunition: rockets, homing missiles, bullets. The kitchen is bombarded as Epyon banks, and dives to the floor, trying to avoid the fire. Pots that hang on the shelf clang, plates are broken, craters are formed on the linoleum tiles. After the firing ceases, smoke and a ringing silence fill the air. Heavyarms turns around. And Epyon is there, sword at the ready, aiming to stab…

And Gino awakens.

His alarm clock is ringing. Time to get ready for school. He closes his eyes again, trying to bring himself back to that dream. It was so exciting; he wanted to know how it ends. When he fails at this, reluctantly, he gets up.

All six of his Gundam Wing models are accounted for, mantled in their places. Some on his desk, some on top of his bookshelf. As he walks out his door, turning into the hallway he looks at the peach-colored paint on the walls. He takes the staircase down, touching the walls for balance, instead of the wooden railings. When he reaches the bottom of the stairs, he looks directly up. The crystal chandelier hangs on the ceiling, just like it always has. Gino heads on to the bathroom; opens the faucet and brushes his teeth. He opens the toilet lid and takes a leak.

After he takes a shower, Gino goes to the kitchen to pour himself a glass of milk. He looks at the linoleum tiles on the floor, on the walls, the pots and pans hanging from the wooden hooks. He drinks his milk straight gulping it down in a breath. He'd better get going, Gino thought. He was going to be late for school. As he walks out the door, Gino doesn't notice the tiny red puddles of molten plastic that had re-hardened on the kitchen floor.

*

Other Gundam series aired on the television after Gundam. None of them held Gino's attention for very long. Gino felt that their mobile suits lacked the same creative energy that was put into the creation of the Gundam Wing. The disappointment he felt at these new mobile suits bordered on irritation. In these times he added only one more figure to his collection: the Gundam Nu from the original Gundam series. The Gundam Nu has a fin funnel system attached to its back that could send out remote controlled beam cannons that could also generate a beam barrier for defensive purposes.

It wasn't until Gundam Seed started to air that Gino's passion for the Gundams came reignited. The pilots were just as clever as they were in Wing, and the Gundams were undoubtedly more powerful. A sequel series came soon after: Gundam Seed Destiny. The walls or Gino's room became even more laden with Gundam paraphernalia: complete season's DVDs, key chains, posters, complete volumes of the manga, video games. But the Gundam models he saved to get the very last; and he waited for the Gundam Seed Destiny series to finish before he started to buy and build them.

On the day that Gino had finished off the last of the Gundam Seed Destiny models—the gold plated Akatsuki—a commotion of vans and a U-haul truck pulled over next door. The house next door to them that had been foreclosed and remained empty for years had apparently been bought.

Gino peeked out his bedroom door window, down into the street to see who was moving in. There was a caged German Shepard on the driveway, who barked at everything that moved. Mover workmen in yellow jumpsuits went back and forth lifting boxes into the house. Directing them, Gino could discern, were a family of four. There was a father, a mother, a little boy, and a girl who looked to be the same age as Gino.

Among the cacophony and commotion Gino caught a name being yelled by the mother: _Irene_. The girl responded to this, and Gino knew her name.

You could say that Irene was a chubby girl. Her face had ample cheeks, made to be pinched, and yet she was capable of an imposing glare that said you'd better not. She had light skin, brilliant in the sun. She wore a dress that would have camouflaged her in a field of flowers. She had a graceful way of moving that reminded Gino of silk moving in the wind.

The sight of her made Gino's heart go a pit-a-pat.

For the next few months Gino didn't dream of his Gundams very often anymore. He spent an atrocious amount of time laying in bed and looking straight up at nothing but the ceiling.

From time to time he would spot Irene going about, down in the street through his bedroom window. And the sight of her would elevate him to a giddy state; then he would take one of his little towels to the bathroom where he would lock himself in. He would emerge a few minutes later looking exhausted.

*

One day, a few years later, Gino suddenly burst through into his room, a look of panic stuck to his face, drops of fear sweat clinging to his forehead and throat. Looking into his eyes, you could see that for the first time he saw that there were things _wrong_ in his room. The Gundams. He realized that the Gundams shouldn't be in his room. Indecision was in his every move, he was second guessing which way he should put his foot forward. He gathered up all of his Gundam models, one armful at a time and dumped them into his closet by all his underwear and pirated DVD Japanese porn featuring Tina Yuzuki and Mihiro Taniguchi.

He'd only just shut the door to the closet, when the doorbell rang from downstairs. For a moment Gino's anxiousness shot up, tripling in level. But he managed to get a hold of himself, and he did his best to fix up his hair and straighten up his clothes as best he could. He opened up one of his drawers and pulled out some cologne that he very carefully sprayed on himself—he didn't want too much of it on him. Gino trotted on downstairs.

It was Irene. She wore a baby blue top that hugged at her ample breasts, and a denim mini-skirt that made Gino feel uncomfortable in his pants.

Gino ushered her inside, the house was empty; they had it all to themselves. Irene laughed at every little stupid thing Gino said, a nervous laughter that tickled Gino's ears.

He led her on up to his room.

"Oh," Irene said, looking at the posters taped on Gino's walls, "Gundam. My brother Josh likes them too."

Gino smiled nervously.

He sat down on his bed, leaving space a space for Irene to sit next to him. Irene sauntered towards him and sat down.

"Ouch!" she said, and stood up again. "What is that?" she asked looking at a bulge in the sheets.

Gino reached over and threw his bed sheets open. The bulge was his gold plated Gundam Akatsuki model. It lay faced down. Its Shiranui Space Pack, spiked with guided mobile beam cannons, was attached to its back—that was what had poked Irene in the butt.

Gino stared at the Gundam. He was so sure he'd put it in the closet with all the other models.

"Is that _your_ toy?" Irene asked.

"It's not a toy." Gino smiled apologetically. "It's a plastic model."

"Sure it is."

Gino realized that he was still holding the Gundam Akatsuki in his hand, and that Irene was looking at him as she would a little kid. So he flung the Gundam aside not even looking at where he threw it. The Gundam bounced on the bed and crashed on the wall before it fell on the floor.

Gino's skin prickled with embarrassment, nervous sweat oozed from his pores. He smiled again, and by the way his skin tugged at his face, he knew it was crooked. His shirt started to cling uncomfortably to his neck so he flapped it a few times to give himself some much needed air.

"I like Sailor Moon," Irene said. "I still keep a few of the dolls I had in my room too. They're too cute."

"Oh." Gino gulped.

Irene sat back down again, this time closer to Gino, so that their arms touched. Then Irene laid herself back, and placed her arm behind her head for a pillow and just continued to lay there next to Gino, staring up at the ceiling. Gino stared at her, marveling at the fact that there was a girl on his bed.

"Your room is so much bigger than mine." She said.

*

Underneath the bed the Gundam Akatsuki laid too, sprawled on the floor. The impact of it crashing against the wall had snapped off its Shiranui Space Pack and one of the golden _Fukigaeshi_ wings on its helm had broken off completely.

*

"Oh my gosh," Irene said. "I have to go." And she got up and fixing the straps of her bra back on the right way. She used her fingers to wipe off the spittle she'd left on Gino's mouth.

"Oh okay," Gino bumbled.

"My mom's gonna be home soon. Okay, I really have to go."

"Yea, sure, I'll walk you home."

*

The Wing Gundam Zero moved. It ignited its boosters and flew over to the window overlooking down at the street down below. It watches Gino and Irish walking on the sidewalk. As Irene leans over to give Gino a goodbye kiss, Wing Gundam Zero locks together its twin buster rifles and aims it at Irish, now walking alone headed for her house…

From the corner a rifle barrel appears pointing at Wing Zero: the Gundam Strike Freedom is there standing close, aiming threat of fire. The Strike Freedom has a profusion of weapons attached to its body. At its back are a splay of Dragoon Wings that both offer extra propulsion and house eight Dragoon Cannons that are each able to detatch

Irene is little more than half way to the front door of her house now. There is a smirk on her face. Wing Zero follows her along with its buster rifle.

Behind Strike Freedom, there appears a beam blade, long and green, held up high by the Gundam Epyon: the arc of the descending blade, ready to take off an arm from Strike Freedom. Yet the blade is still, unmoving.

Now Irish is at the steps, leading up to her house. She turns around to wave and smile at Gino who stands at the door step of his own house.

There is a long red blade aimed at Epyon's midsection. Infinite Justice is holding it. Behind this stand-off the other Gundams scramble. Altron positions itself to cover Epyon. Heavyarms stands in the center of the room, and splays open all its armament compartments—every weapon it has ready to fire and explode.

It's only then that they sense, the dragoon beam wing cannons positioned in constellations throughout the room: some of them blue and grey, from the Strike Freedom; others in shining gold from the Akatsuki; others a stark grey from the Gundam Nu. The floating cannons were scattered in strategic positions: three here aimed at Wing Zero, another four aimed at Epyon, another dozen more distributed among the rest of the Gundams supporting them.

A set of beam cannon spikes fly across the room, they aim at the dragoon cannons aimed at Wing Zero and Epyon. The Gundam Legend enters the tension. Legend is standing at the ledge of Gino's table with Nu, both their blades are drawn against each other.

Akatsuki is still kneeling after having recovered its Shiranui Space Pack. As it tries to get up, it is kicked over from behind by the Gundam Destiny, its wings of light extended, holding its anti-ship sword overhead like an executioner.

In the middle of all this the Gundam Sandrock stands. Its Shotels undrawn, its mashine gun still holstered.

A shadow flitters across the room. Deathscythe uncloaks itself, spreading open its dark wings. It starts to step back, then turns around to saunter on to the closet where they had all come from, and plops itself down right next to the Zaku that had lain there unmoving all this time.

Irene opens the door to her house, and bangs it shut behind her.

When Gino comes into his room, his eyes and mind fail to notice anything out of order. He walks over to where he had thrown the Gundam Akatsuki. He picks it up and turns it around to look at the Shiranui Space Pack attached to its backside. Experimentally, he drops his palm on the spikes, testing to see how much it hurt to put weight down on his model. When he was satisfied, he turned the Gundam to face him. He discovers the broken _Fukigaeshi _wing on his model's helmet.

"Aw, shit!" Gino says.

*

That night a dream visited Gino.

He and Irish are five year olds, playing with their toys. Irish had a Sailor Moon doll, with its blond pigtails and sailor scout uniform. Gino had a Gundam—the original one called the RX-78-2 that had a beam rifle and shield.

"Come on!" Irish said, talking through her Sailor Moon doll. And she turned it away teeter-tottering the doll in mimic of a walk.

"Okay!" Gino said, talking through his Gundam. He reaches for his Gundam with every intention of taking it and making it follow to wherever the Sailor Moon doll would lead them. And he feels a piercing, hot pain eminating from the middle of his palm. As he was reaching for it, his Gundam had pointed its rifle at his palm—and fired. The smell of his burned flesh instantly filled the air; he looked at his palm to find that there was a burned spot there: soft pink flesh and blood surrounded by blackened charred skin. Tears, swelled in his eyes. The Gundam takes aim at the Sailor Moon dolls back, as Irish was making it walk away. Before Gino could stop it, the Gundam fires. And burns a mark on Irish's hand. Irish lets out a yelp, horrifying to Gino's ears. It was the very sound of his failure to protect her. Gino takes her burned hand away from her Sailor Moon doll, and tries his best to put himself between Irish and the Gundam. He places his back towards the Gundam.

The Sailor Moon doll remains standing, though Irish has let go of it. By itself, it turns around. Its big blue eyes looking at the Gundam; its pigtailed blonde hair being blown by the wind. The RX-78-2 Gundam throws its beam rifle to the side. And draws a beam saber from its back. Gino watches it ignite its boosters, knowing it was powering to attack the defenseless Sailor Moon doll. It was over in a flash. The Gundam had sliced off Sailor Moons head. The cut was clean. Gino and Irish watched the dolls head roll towards them, its neck showing the blackness of burned plastic, its long blonde hair had been severed by the blade too, strands of it floated down to the earth like confetti.

Irish screamed. A high pitched squeal that sounded just like a whistle.

The Gundam turned its attention to them.

And Gino wakes…

*

Gino is trying to fix Gundam Akatuski when Irish calls, inviting him over to her house. Now the audio on her laptop had gone out. Could he come over again to help? And Gino replied, oh really? Her parents were gone out on a business trip and they had the house all to themselves? Yea really, Irene said. And the both of them laughed giddily.

Before going over to Irene's house right next door, Gino got into his fathers car and drove off over to the supermarket. He wanted to buy condoms. Just in case.

*

Irene's German Shepard, Bucky, had an affinity for Unidentified Flying Objects. To him they were things that were fun to chase. His masters took him to the park just for this activity. And when you brought an Unidentified Flying Object to the masters, more often than not, you got rewarded with a treat, or, at least, a pat on the head.

So as Bucky drowsed down to sleep, tired from a day of barking at cars and chasing birds in the backyard, he was quite surprised to find an Unidentified Flying Object flying around right in front of his dog house.

He'd never seen anything like it before. It smelled like one of the young master's toys, yet it didn't have any of the young master's scent on it. He wondered if it was new. If that was the case, he should chase it down and bring it back to the young master. Just to be sure.

Bucky gave it a good _Woof!_ to give the Unidentified Flying Object proper warning. The Unidentified Flying Object still kept flying in lazy circles just above Bucky's reach. He chases after it, jumping at it; trying to get his maw in front of its flight path. All Bucky manages to do is to bite on thin air.

The Unidentified Flying Object leads him out flying over the swimming pool, to the narrows of the gate that leads to the front yard. Bucky's sight was so focused on what was going on above him that he didn't see another Unidentified Object standing in front of him.

The Gundam Heavyarms is waiting there for Bucky. Like a poisoned flower, Heavyarms blooms open all of its hatches and fires its entire arsenal at the German Shepard. Tiny bullets pierce Bucky's skin; little rockets become lodged in his fur, then they explode with a _crakk! _setting fires to smolder on his fur.

Behind Bucky the Unidentified Flying Object hovers, then touches down. The Gundam Epyon unfolds, switching modes from Mobile Armor to Mobile Suit. It fires on its blade—a green fire against the midnight—and slashes at Bucky's hind leg. Bucky lets out a whelping growl then drops to the cold ground.

Other Unidentified Flying Objects now showed themselves to Bucky. There were so many of them that all Bucky could do was growl in his fear. Wing Zero, Deathscythe, Altron, Legend, and Destiny.

It was the Gundam Destiny that ended it. Destiny raised its anti-ship sword high and brought it down, cleaving Bucky's throat.

The last sound Bucky ever made was a whimper that went on unheard over a cold autumn night.

*

The door bell rings and Irene opens the door to the empty streetside and the twilight breeze.

"Hello?" she calls out to the dark. Goosebumps prickle on her shoulders. Reluctantly, she closes the door. She decides that she's cold, and that she'd better put on a sweater. A shadow flitters across in the hallway. Irish wonders what that could have been. A bat? She hated bats. Their beady eyes terrified her. She forgets about her intentions on getting a sweater and instead wanders over to the living room. There is a romantic comedy movie playing on the television set. She picks up the remote and turns the volume up louder. She folds herself, knees to her chest, feet up on the cushion, to settle on the sofa. Behind her the shadow flitters from the hallway, circling around to land on the couch's head rest, behind Irene's head. The Gundam Deathscythe uncloaks. Its bat wings unfurl themselves open to reveal its green bladed sickle. It slashes at the back of Irene's head like a reaper slashing at grains.

"Ow!" Irish touches the back of her head and looks at her palm to find severed strands of hair glazed with fresh blood.

She looks over to the side of the couch expecting to find her little brother manipulating the toy that stood there, darker than the night, with its green sickle. She finds no one there. Tears threaten to spill from her eyes as she realizes that she is still all alone in her house. She feels a sting on her wrist and finds that another toy has lashed a red tentacle on her. The red toy flies over her head, and around her, like a sanguine bat. With its whip, it pulls at her trying to take her in the direction of the backyard. Frantically, she tries to unfasten the tiny red whip from her wrist, when it starts to glow red, and turn hot, like the same way metal heats up in a toaster. She feels a tugging at her hair, she looks up to discover yet another one of the toys, holding locks of her dark hair in its mitts that were shaped like beasts. She feels stinging like needles on her ankles. Another one of the toys stands over on the corner of the room, a good distance away from her. She watches sparks emit from the gun that it is holding, and she realizes that it is shooting at her. Tiny plastic beads embed on to her ankles, making them bleed. She screams as her blood is dripping on to the carpet.

She falls on her side, and the toys continue dragging her towards the pool.

*

Gino remembered that he really liked burritos. He wondered if Irene liked burritos too. He buys two of them; he sticks one into the microwave at the 7/11 because he was hungry now. He would eat it in the car on the way to Irene's house.

*

Irene teeters on the edge of the pool now. The underwater lights are turned off, and the pool looks like a black void dug into the linoleum and concrete. Again Irene screams for help, and her cries fall blank against the dead of the night. Two of the toys now hover over the water, pulling her hair and her wrist, but she has found a niche in the concrete, and hooked her fingers and her foot on it. The toy with the gun continues to shower painful pellets on her legs, and her once flawless skin is now riddled with wounds and rivulets of blood. She tries to stand up, but the strain of her hair an ankle getting pulled is too strong, and she falls again. She looks at the two toys hovering in the air, trying to pull her, into the pool.

A tiny curved blade flies across her face, and severs the red whip, that had been banded on her wrist. A curved red shape flies down from the sky and dives down into her hair, cutting the strands being pulled off like a fine razor. The curved shape stops in the middle of the pool, and Irene perceives it to be an airplane of some kind, flat, and a toy drops to stand upon it, using it as a flying platform.

Strike Freedom swings its beam saber at Heavyarms forcing it to booster away. Strike Freedom deploys its Dragoon cannons after him.

Irene stands up, and looks wide eyed at what was going on around her. She recognized these toys. They belonged to Gino. He was the one doing all this. She steps forward to run away, but her foot does not even touch the ground yet when she is struck in the stomach by a projectile, the force of it was like a punch, and it sends her staggering back, and she falls into the pool. A resounding splash.

The object that hit her, Wing Zero, folds itself from mobile armor, to mobile suit mode. Akatsuki

Underwater, Irene finds the light of the moon, and struggles to swim up towards it.

Each time she surfaces for air, she is cut by a hot blade, and her head is pushed back down underwater.

*

Gino knocks at the door to Irene's house, and it pops open. He looks at the lock of the hinges and discovers that they have been destroyed, looking as if they had been melted, then sliced.

Her house smelled as if someone had been setting off firecrackers indoors. The gunpowder aroma filled every inch of the house, though there was no visible smoke. He went to the living room to discover blood on the carpet, it dragged on to a trail leading outside. He followed it out to the backyard, and over by the pool, where he found Irene floating face down on the pool. He dropped the grocery bag he was carrying and dove in after her. When he managed to pull her out the water, Gino kept calling her name, asking her what had happened.

Panicked, he called 911 and did the best he could to administer CPR. Irene remained cold pale, and unmoving.

Gino looked around for any clue what had happened to her. Over on the lawn he spotted a red object that gleamed in the moonlight. He walked over to it for a closer look. It was one of his Model Gundams, Infinite Justice, sliced in half from the torso. On the grass, by the dog house he found Sandrock, fallen, missing an arm and a leg.

He gathered all the pieces he could find in his arms, went to the kitchen and threw all of the parts into the trash.

*

Gino answered all of the questions the policeman asked him. He was in a catatonic state. All he remembered about the line of questions was that he had answered 'yes' to all of the questions he had understood, and 'no' to all the questions he had trouble comprehending. The police man told him to go home and to call him if he remembered anything else. Gino said 'yes,' took the policeman's card, and went home.

When Gino got to his room he sat on his bed, and looked out the window. The red and blue lights from the cop cars were still there, circling around, over and over. Gino thought about Irish. He really liked her. He wondered why she had to die.

Soon he became bored. No chance of sleeping tonight. So he did decided to do what he always did to take up his free time. He opened his closet. He found that only the Gundams Strike Freedom and Akatsuki remained in his closet. They were battered, as though an imaginative five-year-old had been playing with them for a week. He picked Akatsuki up, got some glue, and went about reattaching its broken pieces. These Gundam Models, they were Gino's heart and soul. Didn't you know? And they always will be.

.


End file.
